So having a dinner with wine geeks tomorrow (as opposed to a wine geek dinner, there will be 4 significant others who aren't geeky, so I'll have to govern my tendency to talk about wine). Betsy and I are alternating courses. I'll do some canapes to go with opening Champagne (and some Riesling that some will follow through meal). Betsy is going to do shrimp timbales for a white course (2nd course), final/main course is short ribs with an orzo/cabbage stew (with Bordeaux). End with cheese and dessert. It's the 3rd course I am looking for ideas for.

The requirements:1) needs to be done in advance (for most part, could be thrown in oven, but I don't want to be fussing in kitchen)2) it's to be paired with PN (older)3) it can't be too weighty- it precedes the short ribs, lighter better, and maybe vegetarian a plus.

Simplest would be a mushroom tart or puff pastry, but the best version of the former I've ever had came from one of the guests, a bit daunting. I can't do pasta with orzo following. I also thought of some spinach/tofu napoleans that I do as a match for Chenin blanc or sparkling, maybe revising with a wild mushroom topping and dropping the pickled ginger. Any ideas?

What about braised fennel? Can be made ahead with the final touches (heavy cream, parmesan cheese and a pinch of graed nutmeg) thrown into the oven for the final 30 minutes of cooking while you are completing course #2. You will need:

Quarter bulbs and place in tagine or baking dish, add enough braising liquid to cover about 1/2" of pan, dot with butter and sliced garlic (light hand with this ingredient). Cover with foil and bake in 350degree oven for about 40 mins. Remove from oven, lace with heavy cream, grate over pinch of nutmeg, salt and pepepr, and sprinkle with generous amount of parmesan cheese. Return to oven uncovered, bake until heated through and parmesan is nicely browned. Serve glazed with a bit of the cooking liquid.

Hope this helps.

"...To undersalt deliberately in the name of dietary chic is to omit from the music of cookery the indispensable bass line over which all tastes and smells form their harmonies." -- Robert Farrar Capon

I like Jeff's idea a lot. What about a couple of mushroom/caramelized onion (white) pizzas? They could be prepared ahead of time and cooked on demand, or could even be cooked ahead of time and served at room temperature.

I've never been a huge fan of soups and wine pairings, but if you're not trying to get too geeky then you could do a cauliflower soup with accents of mushrooms/woodsey things to bring it into Burg realm. And if you want to keep it light then not too much dairy and maybe topped off with balsamico/saba/various vinegars that might play well with PN.

Rahsaan wrote:Or, some sort of beet 'salad'. You could roast the beets and served them sliced and dressed/garnished in various ways.

Rahsaan, Much as I adore beets, I find that they don't pair too well with wine. Their sweetness and intense earthiness tend to overwhelm most wines. Have you had different experiences?

Mark Lipton

I think beets can play well in certain circumstances, depending on the extent to which they are the starring role. I think of beets especially with Burgundy or Beaujolais, because of the flavor connections, although I agree the beets may need to be tamed.

Which makes me think that an even better idea than roasted beets would be a roasted carrot/roasted beet dish, again maybe garnished with saba/balsamico, perhaps a flavored oil, and perhaps some cheese. You could lay it out like caprese or stack it like napoleon.

As it happens, tonight I had a side dish of beets. Sauteed and then simmered in mushroom stock, finished with saba and red wine vinegar. It did not cause a wine offense and was a fair partner to 2006 Jasmin. The mushroom omelette and roasted potatoes may have been better matches with the food, but all in all the dinner plate was nice, no problematic clashes occured, and we were happy.

I like Jeff's idea a lot, and think I will probably do that. I'm thinking oven not fried toast (less attention required), with a mix mushroom (shiitake, dried morel, cremini) sautee that can be done in advance. I might do a duck garnish. Best part is at least all the other geeks know Jeff, and I can blame him if it doesn't work.

I did think of a soup, particularly a mushroom/madeira one that Betsy loves, but we did it for a SOBER tasting in Dec and don't want repeats for one guest. The cauliflower soup idea is nice one for future/

I came late to loving beets (mostly canned- home canned, but still- as a kid), but love roasted beets. But agree they tend to overwhelm (for my tastes) if dominant I do find golden beets a bit more laid back. Beefy borscht though isn't bad with wine. But how was the Jasmin?

Beautiful nose, but the palate varied over the night. I'm hoping it's just shut down. Nowhere near as glorious or harmonious as a recent 06 Texier Brezeme Pergaud, which is what inspired me to check on the Jasmin.

Everyone, thanks for suggestions, I went with Jeff's, which was a winner. I rehydrated some morels, sauteed with garlic, shiitakes, and creminis (well in advance). Poured a milk/egg custard over the bread, pressed on parmesan right before guests arrived. Just let it sit till 25 mnutes before that course, then baked. Warmed shrooms and added cream and herbs. Topped bread, with a watercress salad on side. Tasty, easy, wine friendly, and didn't require a lot of time away from dinner table. ! I had actually planned to garnish with a bit of smoked duck breast but store no longer carries, but it didn't need it. If I had to do over again, I'd have seasoned custard a bit more aggressively- just used s & p, but not quite enough, without the mushrooms a little bland (with sauce fine).

Rahsaan wrote:Or, some sort of beet 'salad'. You could roast the beets and served them sliced and dressed/garnished in various ways.

Rahsaan, Much as I adore beets, I find that they don't pair too well with wine. Their sweetness and intense earthiness tend to overwhelm most wines. Have you had different experiences?

Mark Lipton

Was away for the weekend so didn't jump in earlier, but I want to mention that not all beets are created equal. Chiogga, sometimes also called peppermint because of the red/white swirl, are earthier and less sweet, and pair better with aged pinot noir than the sweeter standard dark red variety. Too late to help Dale, but something to note.

My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

I didn't see this either, but I'll offer a couple of options after the fact.

1 - I take about 3 cups of whipping cream and simmer it with mushrooms - my favourite is chanterelles but morels work perfectly too. Simmer quite awhile on a low burner and the mixture will almost suddenly colour and thicken. Add a couple of tbs. sherry and some fresh thyme, and S&P and serve in pasty cases you can buy and cook quickly in the oven. This works superbly with any red wine with decent acidity (e.g. many Italians, Burgs etc.)

2 - do a salad layer with whatever greens you can find, and marinate and grill quail to put on top - perfect size for a small course and a perfect match with a Burg.

I too was thinking along the lines of what Jeff offered. Reminds me a lot of an appetizer we had at a great restaurant in Providence. I think a little veal stock added to the cream would be a wonderful addition if you have some handy.

Hello. My name is Carrie, and I...I....still like oaked Chardonnay. (I feel so much better now.)

Bill, I believe you mentioned the sherry/cream sauce on afw a few years back, I've done a few times (without or without shells)Carrie, we generally do have veal stock, would be good, in this case I used some of the morel rehydration stock.

So beets. Last night our second course at a 1983 claret dinner at Harry's was duck salad. Greens tossed with shredded duck, on a bed of beets with dried cherries. A quick test confirmed my theory that red beets and red Bordeaux will never make my drink pairing list. So I moved lettuce to side, add all the beets and cherries, drank some water, sip of white Bordeaux, more water, then back to the duck salad with some Ducru. Works for me.